Agency

My thesis is about the exploration of the logistics of social and economic pathways to success for socially engaged contemporary artists. This project started for me in October of last year when I met an artist named Eamon White through my current job as a retail leader at Famous Footwear. We were able to work together and cultivate a connection through a shoe painting event that Famous sponsored, and we discussed the idea of collaboration between our store and his practice. As I moved through my art practice and professional career, I was inspired to center my thesis work around a conceptual sculptural practice which seeks to mold the social fabric that economic structures and communities exist within. It has also opened my thesis to the exploration of these ideas and structures in a way which extends my practice past schooling, past the four walls of this institution, into what happens after school. The reality is that this thesis body of work is only the beginning of this work, as it is the space in which I will be positioning my career.

Bio

Marissa is a sculpture artist with a passion for community, free expression, and economics. With a background in retail leadership, she walks in the worlds of both art and private industry with an equal love for both and a drive to combine the two to offer value within these realms.